March 2025
14Mar

Ghanaians prioritise savings as economic challenges persist – Report

Amid economic uncertainties and rising financial stress, Ghanaians are shifting their focus towards savings and long-term financial security. The 2024 Old Mutual Financial Services Monitor has revealed a significant decline in the number of people dipping into their savings to cover shortfalls, signaling a growing emphasis on financial discipline. According to the report, only 18% of working Ghanaians used their savings to make ends meet in 2024, a sharp decline from 61% in 2023. This change suggests that more individuals are...

March 14, 2025
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12Mar

Malaysia to mandate 2% pension fund contribution from foreign workers

Malaysia is set to require its 2.5 million foreign workers to contribute 2% of their monthly salaries to the national pension fund, with employers obligated to match the same amount. Foreign workers will earn dividends on their contributions and can withdraw their savings when they permanently return to their home countries, according to new regulations under the national pension scheme, Employees Provident Fund, which is set to take effect in the last quarter this year, according to The Straits Times. The 2%...

March 12, 2025
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05Mar

More Than Half of U.S. Households Have Retirement Accounts, CRS Says

More than half of U.S. households had retirement accounts in a just-released study by the Congressional Research Service. That’s 54%, to be exact, according to the CRS in “Distribution of Retirement Account Balances: Analysis of the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances,” released on Feb. 26, 2025. The CRS defines “retirement account” for purposes of this study as defined contribution (DC) plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs). It recognizes, however, that U.S. households have other sources of income during retirement as...

March 5, 2025
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February 2025
17Feb

UK. The growing problem of small pension pots and why consolidation is key to better retirement savings

Urgent reform is needed to ensure individuals can manage their retirement savings more effectively. The IFS report identifies small ‘deferred’ pension pots as a major issue in the UK’s pension landscape. Nearly 20 million defined contribution (DC) pension pots worth under £10,000 are no longer being contributed to, with 12.1 million of these containing less than £1,000 (‘micro pots’). Such fragmentation complicates retirement planning for savers and increases administrative costs across the pensions industry. This growing issue not only creates unnecessary...

February 17, 2025
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17Feb

Kenya. Tax reforms usher in new era of retirement security

Kenyans can now contribute more towards their pension without significantly reducing their disposable income following the passing of the Tax Laws (Amendment) Act 2024. The new reforms, which came into effect in December last year, signify a new era of retirement security with a focus on financial stability and healthcare planning, as discussed at a pension stakeholder workshop in Nairobi over the weekend. According to John Keah, the Assistant Director of Market Conduct and Industry Development at the Retirement Benefits Authority...

February 17, 2025
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12Feb

Global pension assets climb to record $58.5 trillion

Global pensions assets rose by 4.9% year-on-year in 2024, reaching a record USD 58.5 trillion, led by growth in the largest DC markets, according to the Thinking Ahead Institute’s (TAI) latest Global Pension Assets Study. This compares to USD 55.7 trillion at the end of 2023, when the same study by the TAI measured a return to growth after the sharp fall in global pension assets in 2022. Despite the rise in overall assets, there are significant differences between regions. The US...

February 12, 2025
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04Feb

UK. £35 million added to State Pension pots

Only two months left to boost State Pension by filling gaps in National Insurance records from 2006 onwards Since the launch of the digital service last April, 37,000 people have topped up more than 68,000 years, worth £35 million People wanting to maximise their State Pension by plugging gaps in their National Insurance record have contributed to a total of 68,673 years, worth £35 million, using the online service since April last year HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has...

February 4, 2025
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January 2025
30Jan

More Nigerians transfer pension savings into mortgage

More Nigerians  are relying on their pension savings to acquire residential mortgage as the number of Retirement Savings Account, RSA, holders that transferred part of their pension savings into residential mortgage increased by 65.03 per cent quarter on quarter, QoQ, to 3,804 in the third quarter of 2024, Q3’24 This form of transfers recorded 2,305 in the second quarter of 2024, Q2’24. According to the Pension Industry Performance Dashboard released by the National Pension Commission, PenCom, yesterday, the value of funds transferred in...

January 30, 2025
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17Jan

Pension reform and wealth inequality: Theory and evidence

By Torben M. Andersen, Joydeep Bhattacharya, Anna Grodecka-Messi & Katja Mann A growing literature explores reasons for rising wealth inequality, but is mostly silent on the role of pension systems despite their well-understood influence on life-cycle savings. This paper develops a simple life-cycle model to lay bare the primary theoretical mechanisms connecting pension systems, asset accumulation, and the wealth distribution. Mandated fully-funded plans transform individuals with lower incomes, often characterized as low savers, into asset owners, and may also imply...

January 17, 2025
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14Jan

Romanian private pension fund assets jump 19% in 2024 on year

Assets held by Romania's seven mandatory private pension funds jumped 19% on the year to 150.85 billion lei ($31.15 billion) in 2024, with the average yield at 5.74%, slightly above the 5.1% annual inflation rate, the industry association said on Tuesday. The European Union member state overhauled its communist-era pension system in 2008, making it compulsory for working Romanians under 35 to contribute to a "second pillar" of private pension schemes as well as their state pension. Roughly 8.3 million Romanians...

January 14, 2025
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